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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23827813">A Sick Spider</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jen27ny/pseuds/Jen27ny'>Jen27ny</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Sick Fic, Sick Peter Parker, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 17:01:14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,324</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23827813</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jen27ny/pseuds/Jen27ny</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When Peter wakes up one morning, the ringing of his alarm especially skull piercing, his limbs as heavy as lead, his head feeling like it’s wrapped in bubble wrap, and when anything besides breathing seems like a bad idea, he ignores all the tell-tale signs of being sick. Because he can’t get sick. They tested it. Which means that whatever this is, it’s not being sick. Peter is not quite sure what it is, seeing that he still has trouble having a single clear thought, but it’s definitely not being sick. </p><p>Or: Peter gets sick.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Ned Leeds &amp; Peter Parker, Peter Parker &amp; Tony Stark</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>343</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>The Friendly Neighborhood Exchange</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>A Sick Spider</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoodFinderBadger/gifts">GoodFinderBadger</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hi everyone!</p><p>This is part of <a href="https://friendly-neighborhood-exchange.tumblr.com/">the Friendly Neighborhood Exchange</a> for <a href="https://imonteamtarlos.tumblr.com/">imonteamtarlos</a> whose prompt was a sick fic. </p><p>Hope you enjoy it! :)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Peter used to get sick a lot. Like, to the point that it would be weird if he wouldn’t be sick for longer than two weeks in a row – and that wasn’t even including his asthma or his allergies. Then the spider bite happened, and that meant good bye being sick and hello sticking to walls.</p><p>So, when Peter wakes up one morning, the ringing of his alarm especially skull piercing, his limbs as heavy as lead, his head feeling like it’s wrapped in bubble wrap, and when anything besides breathing seems like a bad idea, he ignores all the tell-tale signs of being sick. Because he can’t get sick. They tested it. Which means that whatever this is, it’s not being sick. Peter is not quite sure what it is, seeing that he still has trouble having a single clear thought, but it’s definitely not being sick.</p><p>He argues that the slight dizziness that washes over him when he stands up is sleepiness, and after a quick shower he already feels better. For breakfast, he nibbles on some dry toast, not really that hungry – which should’ve been a huge red flag. Thanks to his fast metabolism, he’s <em>always</em> hungry, especially in the morning after not eating for several hours. But still in denial, Peter simply ignores it, absolutely convinced that it’ll get better soon.</p><p>By the time he enters Midtown High, he has to admit that something is going on. He feels sluggish, his usual sharp senses are nowhere in sight, and he almost fell asleep on the subway twice.</p><p>“Dude, you don’t look good,” Neds greets him as Peter tries to unlock his locker with fumbling fingers. “Are you sick?”</p><p>“No, I can’t get sick,” Peter groans, finally getting his locker open, and as a little thank you a new wave of exhaustion crushes over him. “Mr. Stark and Dr. Cho tested that, remember? My body fought off every virus the second they injected it. And remember when literally everyone in school got the flu three months ago? I was the only one that wasn’t sick.”</p><p>“Well, that’s true.” Were Peter’s book always so heavy? They seem pretty heavy today, like someone replaced the pages out of paper with pages out of stone. “But you look pretty sick to me.”</p><p>“’m not sick.”</p><p>“I’m just saying…” Peter groans again, slipping his bag back over his shoulder, and closing his locker. Ned falls into step next to him as they both go to their first class. Well, it’s more of a shuffle, because lifting his feet more than absolutely necessary seems like too much work for Peter. “Maybe you should call Mr. Stark.”</p><p>“What?” For a second, Peter thinks it’s a hallucination from… whatever is going on with him. It’s not a hallucination. “I can’t call Mr. Stark because of this!”</p><p>“Why not? I mean, if you feel sick even though you can’t get sick, it’s probably something he would like to know, right?”</p><p>“Okay, first of all, it’s not even that bad.” Ned just gives him a look that tells Peter he’s clearly not buying that obvious lie. “And second, I’m pretty sure Mr. Stark is really busy with super important board meetings or Avenger’s stuff or… something. I can’t bother him with something this… mundane.” They finally reach their first classroom, and Peter immediately slumps down at his usual desk, stretching out his aching legs. “Besides, I see him this afternoon, anyway. It’s a lab day. I’ll tell him then.”</p><p>“If you say so,” Ned mumbles as he takes a seat next to his friend. “But I don’t think you’re going to survive this day, dude.”</p><p>Peter almost doesn’t survive the school day. He honestly thinks the only reason does survive is because the nice old lady he helped the other day thanked Spider-Man by promising she’ll include him in her prayers and wishes him a long life. PE is the worst by far. Thankfully Peter always keeps up the act of struggling, so Coach Wilson didn’t question it when Peter couldn’t do more than two push-ups.</p><p>When it’s finally time to leave, Peter has never been more grateful to see the slick, black car waiting by the front gates. As fast as his body allows it, he hurries over there, throwing himself on the backseat the second he opens the door, closing his eyes as he groans, once again regretting even getting out of the bed in the morning.</p><p>“Too cool to sit next to me?”</p><p>Peter’s eyes snap open and he stares right into Tony’s face, who is smirking at him. “What? Where is Happy?”</p><p>“Wow, with the way you’re asking, I might start thinking you don’t want me to pick you up.” Before Peter can even begin to argue that he loves it when Tony picks him up from school, his mentor’s smirk turns into a frown. Taking his glasses off, he gives Peter a once-over. “Hey, what’s up with you? You look kinda… sweaty and gross.”</p><p>Then he looks at least a lot better than he feels. “I feel sick.”</p><p>“Sick?” Tony turns around to him as far as his seat belt allows him. “You can’t get sick.” Peter only nods, not feeling too chatty. “You think you might’ve been poisoned?”</p><p>“May’s food is bad, but not poisonous. I think.” At least Peter sincerely hopes May isn’t trying to kill him. Okay, yeah, he forgot to do the dishes a few times, but she can’t be <em>that</em> mad about it, right?</p><p>“That’s weird,” Tony mumbles. “Has this been going on since this morning?” Peter nods, his eyes getting heavier and heavier. “Then why the hell did you go to school? You should be in bed.”</p><p>“But I <em>can’t</em> get sick. You said it yourself. So, it has to be something else.”</p><p>“<em>If I may</em>,” FRIDAY’s voice chimes up from the dashboard, “<em>I did a quick research, and discovered that arachnids can get sick</em>.”</p><p>“What does that mean?” Peter asks, his brain working too slow to keep up with Tony, who is groaning and shaking his head, obviously already knowing what the AI wants to say.</p><p>“It means that we only tested how your body reacts to diseases that make humans sick, and not those that make spiders sick, too.”</p><p>“Does-Does that mean I have some weird… spider sickness?”</p><p>“<em>Arachnids can suffer from fungi, acariasis, and other diseases</em>.” Peter groans. Great. Did he just swapped getting the flu with getting fungi? That sounds disgusting. “<em>There has not been a lot of research on other diseases that affect arachnids yet.”</em></p><p>“Well, looks like the spider sickness research will get a lot of funding in the very near future,” Tony says as he starts the car and pulls onto the road.</p><p>“I didn’t know you care so much about spiders.” The smooth, monotone motion of the car and the low rumble of the engine are working like a lullaby, doing their best to get him to finally fall asleep. His eyes fall shut just a second later.</p><p>Tony snorts. “More like one specific spider.”</p><p>“I don’t like spiders. Their legs creep me out.”</p><p>“Oh, wait until I tell everyone that Spider-Man doesn’t like spiders.”</p><p>“No, you can’t do that!” Peter yells and opens his eyes again, panic pushing away the sleepiness. “A girl told me she stopped being afraid of spider because of Spider-Man! You can’t tell them!”</p><p>“Alright, alright, calm down,” Tony assuages him, sending him a somewhat worried look. “Your secret is safe with me. Now, how about you take a quick nap while I make a few phone calls, yeah?” Peter can only mumble something before his eyes fall shut again.</p><p>Then, suddenly, there’s a hand on his shoulder, shaking him lightly. “Pete, buddy, we’re here.” It takes Peter a lot longer than he’d like to admit to open his eyes. It takes him even longer to realize that they aren’t on the road anymore, but in Tony’s private garage of the penthouse. His mentor stands next to him, one hand still one his shoulder, the other one holding Peter’s backpack. Seeing his confusion, Tony smiles. “Yeah, you slept through the entire ride. Didn’t even hear any of my swearing. C’mon, we have to make a quick stop at the lab, and then it’s bedtime for you. I already checked in with May, so no problems from her.”</p><p>“What are we doing in the lab?” Peter asks as he stumbles out of the car, Tony’s free hand steadying him and leading them towards the elevator.</p><p>Tony gives him a guilty smile. “I’m afraid we have to get some blood from you.” Peter is already whining about it before he can really think about how embarrassing it is to whine in front of Iron Man about being pricked by a needle. “I know you don’t like needles, and I’m sorry about it, but we have to make sure that this isn’t something dangerous. Just one little prick, that’s it.”</p><p>Peter continues to complain, holding on to the little bit of hope that maybe he can talk his way out of it – he has to let go of that hope when the needle is literally only a fraction of an inch away from his skin. Tony gives him a sympathetic smile and slaps a Spider-Man band-aid on the little red dot afterwards (which lifts Peter’s mood a little bit because he didn’t know that there are Spider-Man band-aids), before telling him to take a shower and change into more comfortable clothes.</p><p>Despite already showering in the morning and his really sorry excuses for exercises, Peter is more than happy about another shower, washing away the gross feeling of being sick. When he steps back into the room – <em>his</em> room, which is insane, because what teenager has a room in Tony Stark’s penthouse? – dressed in the comfiest sweatpants and a soft Star Wars shirt, Tony is already waiting for him, leaning against the desk, scrolling through his phone.</p><p>“Good news,” Tony says and looks up from his phone, “I got the provisional results of your blood, and it seems like it’s nothing life-threatening.”</p><p>“Yay,” Peter says, shuffling over to the very welcoming looking bed, falling onto it face first.</p><p>Tony’s laugh booms through the room, and instead of painfully vibrating inside his skull, it soothes away the tension in his shoulders. “C’mon, don’t be dramatic.” Peter grunts, which translates to <em>Look who’s talking</em>. “Okay, fair point. Alright, how about you catch up on some sleep, and we see if that healing factor of your will take care of this.”</p><p>Peter mumbles something unintelligible.</p><p>“Sorry, what was that?”</p><p>
  <em>“Mr. Parker would like you to stay, boss.”</em>
</p><p>“FRIDAY, you snitch,” Peter groans and rolls on his back. He makes a point of not catching Tony’s eyes. He only asked him to stay because he knew Tony wouldn’t understand it. It’s a childish request, Peter knows that. But Ben and May always stayed with him when he was sick, giving him the kind of comfort he couldn’t get from the comfiest blanket, the most delicious soup, or his favorite Star Wars movie.</p><p>A stifling tension fills the room, making Peter hyperaware of his own heartbeat. Could he blame some kind of fever-induced delirium for asking this? Or some fungus that attacks his brain and makes him ask stupid questions? Just anything to get away from this awkwardness.</p><p>Tony sniffs once. “Well, no, I can’t.”</p><p>A lump forms in Peter’s throat and his eyes start to burn, all of which he blames on his sickness. Of course Tony doesn’t stay with him. He doesn’t have the time to look after a sick teenager. And it’s stupid, anyway. Peter shouldn’t need someone to stay with him. Besides, he and Tony aren’t <em>that</em> close, are they? After all, Tony is basically his boss. You don’t ask your boss to sit with you when you’re sick.</p><p>“I mean, not like this I can’t. There’s no space left in the bed.” Slowly – because he’s still pretty dizzy – Peter turns his head to look at Tony, who only raises an eyebrow in return. “Scoot over.”</p><p>“Could you repeat that, please?” Peter asks, because this has to be some kind of hallucination. This can’t be real.</p><p>“What? You already changed your mind?” Because Peter still doesn’t react in any way, Tony just pulls on the blanket, dragging the blanket out from underneath him and pushing him to one side of the bed. A second later, Peter feels the mattress shift as Tony sits down next to him, taking his time to kick his shoes off before stretching his legs out on the bed, and throwing the blanket over both of them.</p><p>“What are you doing?” Peter eventually asks as Tony takes the remote and turns on the TV.</p><p>“You asked me to stay, didn’t you?”</p><p>“B-But you said you can’t.”</p><p>“Yeah, ‘cause you took up all of the bed. There was no space left for me.” As if to proof a point, Tony playfully nudges Peter’s side, coaxing a smile out of him. Then he asks with real concern in his voice: “Anything else you need?”</p><p>Deciding to take a risk – and if he has to, he can always blame it on being sick – and turns around, throwing one arm around Tony’s stomach and snuggling closer to him, face pressed into his side. For a second, Tony freezes, his heart beating twice as fast as usual. “Nah, I’m good.”</p><p>Tony snorts, dropping his hand onto Peter’s head, running his finger’s through Peter’s still damp curls. “Looks like you’re pretty low-maintenance.”</p><p>“It’s my only good quality.”</p><p>“I would say you have a few more.” The hand on his hand moves from his hair to his face, covering his eyes. “Now, hush. Sick spiders need their sleep.”</p><p>Peter hides his smile in Tony’s shirt, as the steady heartbeat next to him and the low rumble of the TV lull him to sleep.</p>
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